It is known in the prior art to form and make available coreless rolls of toilet tissue, paper toweling and the like. Such products incorporate no inner core and are comprised wholly of a plurality of convolutions of the paper itself. A central opening is defined by the innermost roll of convolution and the central opening can accommodate spindles and shafts to support the roll as it is dispensed by being unwound by a consumer.
Of course, if some means is not provided to prevent end-wise movement of the roll relative to the support spindle or shaft, the roll may be removed in its entirety simply by manually pulling it end-wise from the spindle or shaft.
One approach for preventing end-wise removal of a coreless roll from its support is to position the roll and support within the confines of a cabinet. Cabinets, however, add to the cost of the dispenser, may be inconvenient to service, and are not always appropriate for use.
Mechanisms have been devised for the purpose of resisting end-wise removal of a roll product from its support. U.S. Pat. No. 3,792,822, issued Feb. 19, 1974, for example, discloses a tissue roll holder including a support member adapted for fixed mounting to a wall and a sleeve rotatably and permanently mounted thereon, the sleeve being provided with a plurality of sharp prongs for penetration of and locking engagement with the tubular core of a conventional roll of tissue placed thereon to prevent removal of the roll.
The device of U.S. Pat. No. 3,792,822 is inappropriate for use with coreless paper rolls such as coreless toilet tissue rolls and paper towel rolls. The prongs illustrated in the patent, due to their sharp and relatively shallow nature, would engage only a very few inner convolutions of a coreless roll and cause them to tear upon application of minimal end-wise force on the roll by a person attempting to remove the roll from its support. Also, the prongs can possibly injure a person using or servicing the device.
A search directed to the present invention located the following United States patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,235,389, issued Nov. 25, 1980, U.S. Pat. No. 4,984,915, issued Jan. 15, 1991, U.S. Pat. No. 4,248,391, issued Feb. 3, 1981, U.S. Pat. No. 4,878,631, issued Nov. 7, 1989, U.S. Pat. No. 5,135,179, issued Aug. 4, 1992, U.S. Pat. No. 3,612,423, issued Oct. 12, 1971, U.S. Pat. No. 4,212,434, issued Jul. 15, 1980, U.S. Pat. No. 4,314,678, issued Feb. 9, 1982, and U.S. Pat. Des. 246,021, issued Oct. 11, 1977.
The above-identified patents do not address the problems discussed above and solved by the present invention.